JANACECK: Strings Quartets Nos. 1 & 2 - WOLF: Italian Senenade [CD de audio] Hagen Quartet and Janaceck, Wolf

Janácek's extraordinary string quartets, written towards the end of his life, are full of drama and passion, reflecting his own emotions at the time. The first string quartet, inspired by Tolstoy's bitter tragedy The Kreutzer Quartet, reflects the pain of the composer's loveless marriage. The intense lyricism is reminiscent of Beethoven, but the fierce fragility of the music, which matches the violence of the story, and the interruptions of the trembling violins, give it an inspired originality. The string quartet No. 2 Intimate Letters from 1928 reflects his unrequited longing for the love of his life, Kamila Stösslová. Such is the strength of their emotions that they burn through painful harmonies and harsh, spectral sounds, made by the players playing the bridge. Hugo Wolf is known primarily for his Lieder and the Italian Serenade in G Major offers a rare insight into another form of composition. It evokes a poem by Eichendorff, Der Soldat, the rapid dialogue between the instruments that reflects the gallop of a young soldier towards his maiden's castle. Like Janácek, Wolf's music has an unpredictable, nervous intensity. First impressions of the Italian Serenade are of a gentle and humorous piece, but a haunting cello solo in the middle gives the piece an unsettling feel. The Hagen Quartet, celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, is one of the most respected string quartets in the world. They are known for the precision and dynamism of their overall performance, and the color and nuance they bring to the performance. His searing readings of these works were recorded in 1988.